Nations Pursue Talks to Turn Tide in Syria

U.S. and Russian Diplomats Renew Push for Peace Negotiations, as EU Lets Arms Embargo Fall to Put Pressure on Assad

ENLARGE

Syrian forces move against rebels in Aleppo on Monday.
Reuters

By

Keith Johnson and

Stacy Meichtry in Paris and

Laurence Norman in Brussels

Updated May 28, 2013 5:11 a.m. ET

Secretary of State
John Kerry
met with French and Russian diplomats in Paris in a bid to kindle peace talks aimed at ending Syria's civil war, as the European Union cleared the way for possible arms shipments to moderate rebels should those talks fail.

The three-way Paris meeting on Monday was part of a wider effort to arrange a peace conference in Geneva next month meant to craft a political solution to the two-year-old Syrian crisis.

Plans for the conference have been dogged by divisions among the Syrian rebels, who haven't decided if they will take part, as well as conflicting messages from Damascus about attendance by representatives of the regime of
Bashar al-Assad.

ENLARGE

Secretary of State John Kerry, right, meets Russia's Sergei Lavrov in Paris.
Reuters

After close to 12 hours of tense negotiations in Brussels, the EU's 27 members agreed to keep a host of economic sanctions in place while letting their embargo on sending weapons to Syria's opposition formally expire on Friday.

A U.K. official said EU countries had committed not to ship any weapons to Syria before Aug. 1, but would have a free hand after that date—a decision intended in part to pressure the Assad regime into talks.

"Lifting the embargo can accelerate peace talks, because the Syrian regime will have to negotiate," a French official said.

The EU decision met with criticism from Russia's deputy foreign minister, who said it undermines Russian and U.S. efforts to mediate peace talks in Geneva next month, the Associated Press reported Tuesday. Sergei Ryabkov called the decision "a manifestation of double standards" that will hurt the prospects for talks, according to AP.

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The U.K. and France have been pushing for months for the EU to relax its ban on sending weapons to the main moderate opposition group, arguing that the rebels need better arms to counter an onslaught of attacks from the Assad regime's artillery and air force.

"While we have no immediate plans to send arms to Syria, it gives us the flexibility to respond in the future if the situation continues to deteriorate," U.K. Foreign Minister
William Hague
said.

Opponents of the move say easing the embargo could deepen the bloodshed and undermine upcoming peace talks. But the U.K. and France insisted in the talks they wouldn't extend the current arms embargo without amending it to allow arms shipments to the rebels beyond June 1. That forced other member states to either sink the EU's entire sanctions regime or allow London and Paris the freedom to send weapons.

Both London and Paris have said they would supply weapons to Syrian rebels only if they have strong assurances that the equipment wouldn't end up in the hands of extremist groups that have spread through rebel ranks.

A senior State Department official said late last week that "first indications" are that moderate Syrian forces are getting an increasing share of Western aid, and that Islamist groups are receiving less, a sign that the vetting of Syrian groups is improving.

The U.S. and its European allies are struggling to rebalance the Syrian conflict, which risks becoming increasingly lopsided as the Assad regime receives arms shipments from Russia.

Mr. Kerry arrived in Paris on Friday afternoon to meet for the sixth time this year with Russian Foreign Minister
Sergei Lavrov.
The two later had dinner with French Foreign Minister
Laurent Fabius,
who joined them after the European talks in Brussels.

For the U.S., a peace conference would be a way to try to help end the violence that has claimed more than 80,000 lives so far, without direct U.S. involvement in the civil war.

For Russia, wary about a possible victory by Islamist-influenced opposition forces, lengthy peace talks could allow the Assad regime to consolidate its recent gains.

But U.S. officials said that in order to convince the regime to negotiate, opposition forces need to change the situation on the ground. Pro-Assad fighters have won victories in recent days in key areas, including around Damascus and the crossroads city of Qusayr. Hezbollah forces and Iranian military advisers have joined the fight in significant numbers, helping Mr. Assad's forces, U.S. officials said.

The influx of foreign fighters has worried the U.S. and countries across the region, who fear violence in Syria could spark conflict in neighboring countries. On Sunday, a Hezbollah stronghold in Beirut was hit by a pair of rockets. The attack, which Lebanese officials say came from inside the country but wasn't claimed by any group, drew Lebanon further into the Syrian conflict.

Later Sunday, Israel was attacked by a rocket launched from southern Lebanon, a tactic used in the past by Hezbollah.

Israeli President
Shimon Peres
said Israel was "silent, but not indifferent" to the Syrian conflict, but said it wouldn't intervene.

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